As computing systems become increasingly complex and capable, they are relied upon to perform increasingly important tasks. The computer systems that make up networks such as the Internet and corporate intranets are often relied upon to route millions of information packets to a multitude of destinations, where the information is used in critical business processes. As a result, in the world of data communications and enterprise computing, system uptime and availability are of vital importance, and platform management and adequate redundancy are key means to achieving these ends.
In computer systems, “redundancy” typically refers to the inclusion of back-up components that can take over if the system's primary components go down, thus insuring that the system remains available for use, even if some of its parts fail. For example, a system might include multiple, otherwise identical disk drives, servers, software, and/or the like. Like redundancy, “platform management” is a technique that can be used to maximize system uptime and availability. Platform management typically refers to a set of procedures and mechanisms designed to monitor system health and performance, report errors and malfunctions, and/or facilitate recovery.